Ode to Fall

Fall colors in Shenandoah National Park

Days are getting shorter, there’s a chill crisp in the air.

Squirrels have turned hoarders, there’s not a moment to spare!

Must gather those nuts, stock up, and prepare

For Winter’s coming, cold winds, and snow,

No telling how harsh those chill winds will blow.

But wait! Tomorrow’s not yet so stop now and see.

Don’t rush past, take this moment to breathe.

Cherish Queen Autumn in all her majesty.

Summer’s bye, as all yesterdays are gone

Winter’s not here, for tomorrows never come.

Today is the golden-hued opportunity Nature does endow

So breathe deep the beauty of the Here and the Now.

A Little Madness in the Spring

Ahhh, Spring! Spring temperatures (again), Spring smells, Spring sounds. Spring means a freshness in the air, a lightness in the step, the casting off of the heaviness of winter. There's a vivid sense of renewal, rejuvenation, a new kind of energy, a hope, a dream, and the anticipation of things to come. Certainly a kind of madness overtakes us: Spring comes once every year yet each Spring feels new, as if there had never been a Spring before.

To start your Spring off right, I thought I would share with you one of my favorite poems about Spring. This is from Emily Dickinson:

A little Madness in the Spring
Is wholesome even for the King,
But God be with the Clown --
Who ponders this tremendous scene --
This whole Experiment of Green --
As if it were his own!

Finding Beauty in Simple Things

Christopher Engnoth is a talented Alexandria artist as well as the art director at my shop, Mindful Hands, and my life partner. So I'm a little biased when I say his landscapes of the Potomac River and surrounding environs are quite breath-taking. The image here is of Chris' watercolor, "Frozen Potomac." His interest in nature and water was sparked by his childhood on the Chesapeake Bay. He says of his art, "I hope that my paintings can bring some measure of peace and joy to those who, like me, can appreciate the beauty in simple things."